Steps 2 and 3 on A Study of Reading Habits

After looking at the poem by Philip Larkin, A Study of Reading Habits more closely and making observations in class, it is time to move onto the second and third stages by analyzing and interpreting the poem, looking at how it says what it does and use this knowledge to find out what it means.

By beginning the poem with the word “when,” Larkin lets the reader know that he is reflecting on what he used to do when he was younger, back when books were his way or escaping or relaxing. By using phrases such as, “getting my nose in a book” and “ruining my eyes,” Larkin reveals that he did not casually read books for fun, but instead, became enveloped by the stories and couldn’t get enough of them. The phrase “ruining my eyes” might also be interpreted as the idea of ruining his physical eyes in which he views the world, since all that he ever looks through are they eyes created in his books. He is no longer able to enjoy the sight of this world, due to his overuse of his eyes in his fantasies. Like a drug addiction, Larkin needs to see something that is not real.

The use of the word “cured,” shows how, to Larkin, reading was a medication of some sort, or a way to be filled with something outside of his body. Books were a way to find another joy, and he grew to yearn for this feeling. This can be compared to the end of the poem when Larkin urges his readers to just “get stewed,” or drunk, instead of reading these books. Growing up, books were used in the same way alcohol is used, and for the same reason. For this reason, it was worth ruining his eyes and having to wear “inch-thick specs.”

Through books, Larkin was able to become the bully he always despised in his real life. In fact, he could be whatever he wanted to be. As he grow older, instead of just using the power of his imagination to “deal out the old right hook” to bullies twice his size, he turned himself into some sort of dark monster. The words “fangs,” “ripping” and “dark” show Larkin’s malicious intent, as his fantasies grew larger. In his mind, he could become whatever he dreamed of, whether it be a vampire, wolf or possibly even a rapist, which can be inferred through the line, “the women I clubbed with sex.” The idea of escaping his everyday life through books is again made clear in the second stanza. Instead of living governed by rules, Larkin yearns to be free and roam as he pleases, in a place different from his real life.

Finally, by bringing the reader into present time, Larkin explains how books today are no longer able to fulfill the job they once did. Instead of reading about evil and dark books, where he could take on the role of the villain, Larkin is constrained by stories of the common man. He no longer wishes to read these stories, believing they are stories of himself and not who he seeks to be. As he states these stories, “seem far to familiar,” since he is now the one actually living them. No longer do books help him escape, instead they reveal more truth about his life, which in turn causes him to call them “a load of crap.” Now, instead of books, Larkin turns to drinking in hopes of escaping and attaining his dreams.